Sahā
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Translations of Sahā | |
|---|---|
| Sanskrit | सहा (IAST: Sahā) |
| Pali | सह (Saha) |
| Chinese | 娑婆 (Pinyin: Suōpó) |
| Japanese | 娑婆 (Rōmaji: Shaba) |
| Korean | 사바 (RR: Saba) |
| Tibetan | མི་འཇེད་འཇིག་རྟེན་ Wylie: mi 'jed 'jig rten |
| Vietnamese | Sa bà |
| Glossary of Buddhism | |
Sahā or more formally the Sahā world (Sanskrit: sahāloka or sahālokadhātu) in Mahāyāna Buddhism refers to the mundane world, essentially the sum of existence that is other than nirvana.
It is the entirety of conditioned phenomena, also referred to as the trichiliocosm. As a term, its usage is comparable to the Earth (pṛthivī) or as the place where all beings are subject to the cycle of birth and death (saṃsāra). It is the place where both good and evil manifests and where beings must exercise patience and endurance (kṣānti). It is also described as the place where Śākyamuni Buddha teaches the Dharma.
The Sahā world is divided into three distinct realms or worlds (traidhātuka or trailokya).
Its ruler is Mahābrahmā Sahāmpati.
Composition
Realm of Desire
The desire realm (kāmadhātu) is where all sentient beings consist of a physical body and are susceptible to the experience of sense faculties. These beings are generally composed of 18 elements (dhātu), that include the sense bases and their respective modes of consciousness.
In Buddhist cosmology, the desire realm is often described as being composed of four continents (cāturdvīpaka) which surround Mount Sumeru, which itself is surrounded by oceans and mountain ranges. The four continents are
- Jambudvīpa in the South
- Pūrvavideha in the East
- Uttarakuru in the North
- Avaragodānīya in the West
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